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FULL SCALE PLANT TESTING OF A PROCESS THAT USES SEWAGE SLUDGE TO

PRODUCE AN ORGANICALLY-ENHANCED GRANULAR NITROGEN FERTILIZER

David Weber, P.E.


Unity Envirotech LLC

A full scale granulation testing facility was utilized to confirm process chemical and physical
operating parameters and product fertilizer composition for the production of an
inorganic/organic (sewage sludge) granulated nitrogen fertilizer. This technology was developed
and commercialized in 1996 and optimized in full scale testing completed in 2006 and 2008.
Dewatered sewage sludge was used as a replacement for water as the granulator pipe-cross
reactor cooling agent. Pipe-cross reactor raw materials included sulfuric acid, anhydrous
ammonia, and conditioned sludge. Granulator raw materials included slurry discharge from the
pipe cross reactor, anhydrous ammonia, aluminum sulfate, granulated ferric sulfate, and recycled
product. Final fertilizer product meets all EPA Part 503 standards and fertilizer industry
standards end point conditions of hardness, critical relative humidity and moisture including 17-
18% nitrogen with 7.5% organic matter, 4% total carbon, 3% amino acids and micronutrients.
This is a true beneficial use technology with value added components that recycle important
nutrients to farm soils with less nutrient loss to the environment.

KEYWORDS: sewage sludge, fertilizer, pipe-cross reactor, granulation, nitrogen, organic


matter, amino acids, micronutrients

INTRODUCTION

The fertilizer production process utilizes historically proven standard commercial fertilizer
manufacturing equipment developed by the Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) which has been
used throughout the fertilizer industry since the 1950’s. This equipment involved a rotary
granulator and dryer system to make granulated fertilizer (IFDC, 1989).

In the 1970’s, TVA invented the pipe-cross reactor (PCR) wherein one or two acids were
simultaneously ammoniated with the slurry discharging into a TVA-type rotary granulator
(Figure 1), (TVA, 1980). Use of the PCR followed by granulation and drying was introduced by
the TVA to produce Nitrogen-Phosphorous-Potash-Sulfur (NPKS) mixtures. This became an
established process used by numerous producers world-wide (UNIDO/IFDC, 1998). Its use had
established a new type of granulation for these mixtures: melt granulation. The PCR had inlet
ports for anhydrous ammonia, various acids and water as a cooling agent. The salient feature was
that the heat of the ammonia-acid reaction was confined to the pipe and was efficiently utilized
there to vaporize a large fraction of the moisture and thereby reduce dryer fuel requirements.
Scrubbers

Sulfuric Acid

Fertilizer
Cooling Granulator Dryer Screens Cooler
Product
Water
Anhydrous Unders Overs
Ammonia
Cyclone and Crushers
Bag Filters

Recycle Fines and Dust

FIGURE 1 TVA FERTILIZER TECHNOLOGY

The PCR process uses anhydrous ammonia as the nitrogen source and phosphoric and sulfuric
acids as the major source of phosphorous and sulfur. The pipe discharges the slurry onto a
cascading bed of recycled solids in the granulator. This slurry serves as the binder for the
formation of granules. The heat of reaction maintains a pipe temperature of 100 to 150° C. The
granulation products have excellent quality; they are hard, remain free flowing in storage, and
have good resistance to degradation (UNIDO/IFDC, 1998). The Unity Technology replaces the
PCR water cooling agent with conditioned dewatered sewage sludge (Figure 2).

Scrubbers

Sulfuric Acid

Fertilizer
Conditioned Granulator Dryer Screens Cooler
Product
Sludge
Anhydrous Unders Overs
Ammonia
Cyclone and Crushers
Bag Filters

Recycle Fines and Dust

FIGURE 2 UNITY FERTILIZER TECHNOLOGY

METHODOLOGY

Full scale granulation plant process optimization testing was completed in 2006 and 2008 to
confirm the use of conditioned dewatered sewage sludge in a granulation process with a TVA
PCR (Figure 2) that converted sewage sludge organic matter (proteins) through chemical and
physical processes into a fertilizer with value–added high nitrogen (17 to 18%) content and
organically enhanced with 7.5% organic matter, 4% total carbon, and 3% amino acids while
sterilizing pathogens, eliminating odors and completing the drying, screening and cooling
process for a granular product that has reduced heavy metals and no spontaneous
combustion/explosive problems experienced by traditional sludge dryers.
Sludge Conditioning Process
Production is carried out in two independent processes: the Sludge Conditioning Process and the
Fertilizer Production Process. The Sludge Conditioning Process under this study preconditioned
dewatered sewage sludge into 6,000 gallons of a homogenized pumpable fluid material
(Conditioned Sludge). Sewage sludge was dewatered to 15% solids with polymer on a belt filter
press at a local municipal activated sludge plant and chemically conditioned to meet end point
viscosity of less than 5,000 centipoise (cP) and Oxidation Reduction Potential (ORP) greater
than +300 mV.

Fertilizer Production Process


The Fertilizer Production Process consisted of feeding 93% sulfuric acid, anhydrous ammonia
and conditioned sewage sludge at 215 to 275 kg/h through a PCR. The study of the data
gathered during the plant tests confirmed process operating and design parameters such as the
mole ratios, product recycle ratios (7 to 8 to 1), dryer load requirements, combustion potential,
equipment dust loadings, and gas emissions needed for the design of a full scale 50 to 1500
metric tons per day production facility.

The granulation plant was operated four (4) days per week, 10 hours per day at production
capacities that ranged between 100 and 200 kg/h. The two test runs produced a total of 35 metric
tons of finished product.

The critical chemical reactions that produce the fertilizer product take place in the pipe-cross
reactor with operating temperatures up to 150°C at a pH of less than 3. At these operating
conditions a number of important reactions occur that positively affect the quality and properties
of the fertilizer product, they are:

Microbial disinfection is achieved which exceed all time/ temperature requirements of the US
EPA 40CFR Part 503 for Class A pathogen reduction standards for biosolids;
Inorganic salts are formed from the reaction of mixing an acid with anhydrous ammonia;
Hydrolysis of the sludge organic macro-molecules (proteins) occurs with proteins converted
to amino acids.

The details of the Fertilizer Production Process involve:

1. Pumping Conditioned Sludge to a pipe-cross reactor used for mixing a base (anhydrous
ammonia), and acid (sulfuric acid) to form a slurry;
2. Flashing off the water contained in the slurry as steam,
3. Spraying of the slurry into the cascading bed of recycled particles in a drum granulator to
form accreted (onion-like) granules
4. Drying, screening and cooling of the granules to achieve the finished fertilizer product.

When the pressurized slurry generated by the exothermic chemical reaction in the PCR is
sprayed in the granulator up to 95% of the water flashes off and only about 5 % of additional
combustion energy is required to complete the drying process. The final product is a hard
fertilizer granule containing less than 2% moisture.
DISCUSSION

The following is a summary of the pilot plant test results:

Untreated Sewage Sludge: dewatered sludge at 15% solids and 85% water after chemical
conditioning was proven to replace water as the cooling agent in the TVA pipe-cross reactor
feeding a rotary granulator and dryer.
Fertilizer: The inorganic/organic fertilizer met end product requirements of 17-18% N,
1% P, and 19% S.
Product Moisture: The inorganic/organic fertilizer was able to achieve industry standards
for moisture of 1.5%, achieving moistures as low as 0.4%.
Granular Crushing Strength: The inorganic/organic fertilizer was able to meet crushing
strength of 2.1 to 2.6 kg/granule which is considered good to desirable (IFDC, 1993).
Product Combustibility: The Fertilizer was classified as noncombustible as determined by
lab combustibility tests (Kidde, 2007). Dusts that are not combustible at an initial
concentration of 500 g/m3 are retested at 1000 g/m3 and 2,000 g/m3. The granulated fertilizer
dust was classified as noncombustible at concentrations of 500, 1,000 and 2000 g/m3.
Sewage Sludge Disinfection: PCR, granulator and dryer all exceed time/temperature
requirements of EPA Part 503 for Class A pathogen reduction. Time/temperature and low pH
conditions provide sludge disinfection.
Reduced Heavy Metals: All sewage sludge metals are reduced in the final product by a
factor of 6 upon integration with ammonium sulfate.
Value-Added: Granulated fertilizer has value-added micronutrients, carbon, sulfur and
amino acids (3%) from sludge protein.
Fertilizer Physical Properties: The Fertilizer meets or exceeds the Fertilizer Industry’s
“Physical Property Standards” (IFDC, 1993) as shown below in Table 1 and 2.

Table 1: Physical Properties of Unity and Other Fertilizers


Unity Granular Granular Granular
Property
Product Urea MAP DAP
%Critical Relative Humidity 80 - 85 70 - 75 70 - 75 65 - 75
(30 deg C)
Moisture Penetration, cm 0.5 - 1.0 15 1.0 2.0
Moisture Absorption, mg/cm2 (30 41 - 144 350 90 175
deg C and 80% RH for 72 hours)
Abrasion Resistance, % 0.49 - 0.99 0.2 - 3.0 0.5 - 2.0 0.5 - 2.0
Degradation
Granule Crushing Strength, 2.0 - 2.6 1.5 - 3.5 2.0 - 3.0 3.0 - 5.0
kg/granule
Granule Integrity Excellent Fair to Good Fair to Good Fair to Good
Bulk Density, loose, kg/m3 825 - 875 720 - 820 900 - 1100 875 - 1100
Angle of Repose, degrees 35 34 - 37 30 - 35 30 - 35
Combustion Potential 0 NA NA NA
Oxidation Reduction Potential, mV +350 NA NA NA
MAP – Monoammonium Phosphate, DAP – Diammonium Phosphate
Table 2: Chemical Properties of Inorganic/Organic Fertilizer
Process Nitrogen Phosphorus Sulfur Amino Iron Total Organic Moisture
Run Total, % P205 %S Acid % Carbon Matter %
%N % Fe % %
7-890 17.4 1.1 19.6 3.08 2.3 4.6 7.6 4.9
7-891 17.7 1.3 20.0 3.11 2.7 4.94 7.9 1.7
7-892 17.5 1.1 19.3 3.11 2.2 4.581 7.5 3.6
7-893 17.6 1.2 19.3 3.00 2.1 4.824 7.5 2.1
7.894 17.6 1.1 20.3 2.96 2.1 4.207 7.2 1.3
7-895 18.0 1.1 19.8 2.64 2.3 4.357 6.9 0.4
7-896 17.8 1.2 19.7 3.10 2.1 4.620 7.1 1.1
7-897 17.2 1.1 19.0 2.88 2.65 4.983 7.8 3.5
7-898 17.0 1.2 18.8 3.23 2.43 5.530 9.0 3.7
7-899 17.4 1.2 18.7 3.25 2.5 4.866 7.8 2.1
7-900 17.5 1.1 19.4 2.3 ------ -------- ------- 0.6
7-901 18.0 1.02 19.9 2.91 2.21 4.608 6.9 2.2

CONCLUSIONS

The U.S. commercial fertilizer market at 54 million dry tons per year is based on a synthetic
inorganic type of fertilizer (UNIDO/IFDC, 1998). The sewage sludge production in the U.S. was
estimated at 6.9 million dry tons per year in 1999 (EPA, 1999). The incorporation of sewage
sludge under pressure, high temperature and low pH conditions allows sewage sludge organic
matter to be disinfected and converted to carbon and amino acids for incorporation into
inorganic/organic commercial fertilizers. This provides beneficial recycling of sewage sludge
from cities back to the farm.

Dewatered sewage sludge can be successfully used by this process to produce a new
inorganic/organic commercial fertilizer with important value-added amino acids and
micronutrients. The process is operated under chemical and physical stress conditions of time
and temperature that sterilizes and convert sewage sludge into proteins and amino acids.

FUTURE PLANS

Plans are underway for design and construction of a new Florida Fertilizer Processing Facility
that has been approved by the Florida Department of Environmental Protection as a Residuals
Management Facility. The facility is permitted to use 310 dry tons per day of sewage sludge in
the production of 2,200 dry tons per day of commercial fertilizer.
REFERENCES

International Fertilizer Development Center (IFDC), Production of Granular NPKs in


Ammonium Phosphate Plants James J. Schultz 1989

Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) Patent, 1980, Commercialization of the TVA Pipe-Cross
Reactor in Regional NPKS and DAP Granulation Plants in the Unity States, Tennessee Valley
Authority, Muscles Shoals, Alabama

United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO) and International Fertilizer


Development Center (IFDC), Fertilizer Manual, 1998, Kluwer Academic Publishers

International Fertilizer Development Center, Manual for Determining Physical Property of


Fertilizer, 2nd Edition February, 1993

Kidde Fenwal Combustion Research Center (2007), Determination of Combustibility Unity Test
Data

EPA, 1999 Biosolids Generation, Use, and Disposal in the United States, EPA530-R-99-009
September 1999

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